Descent to the Dark Goddess
A Women's Underworld Immersion
Descent to the Dark Goddess
A Women's Underworld Immersion
April 22-26, 2026
Do you hear it?
That insistent pull beneath the surface of your well-lived life:
a call from the depths, from the dark,
from something ancient that will not
let you rest?
This is not a call to heal what's broken.
This is a call to descend.
Do you hear it?
That insistent pull beneath the surface of your well-lived life:
a call from the depths, from the dark, from something ancient that will not let you rest?
This is not a call to heal what's broken.
This is a call to descend.
Like Inanna walking into the underworld, we are being asked to shed what we've carried (even the beautiful things, especially the beautiful things) so that we might die to who we've been and be remade by what waits in the fertile dark.
For five days, we gather as women in the carved beauty of Aravaipa Canyon. Held by ancient stone, shaded by cottonwoods, blessed by flowing water and the voices of the more-than-human world. Here, under a waxing crescent moon, we will create a ceremonial container potent enough to hold our descent.
This is for women who long
for the love of the dark,
not just the love of the light.
This is for those who know in their bones that the gifts of darkness (the wild, the erotic, the raw, the unnamed) are precisely what these times are asking of us. That our full power lives not in what we've perfected, but in what we've been too afraid to claim.
In a world that wants women small, compliant, and forever working on ourselves, we will gather to remember something dangerous: when women come together in service to Mystery, we access an ancient and transformative power.
-
Over five days, we'll work with soulcraft practices rooted in the underworld territories of psyche and nature. Practices designed to evoke soul encounter: that life-shifting experience of meeting your true self and the unique mythopoetic gift you were born to offer the world.
We'll engage in:
Soulcentric dreamwork and deep imagery journeys
Solo time on the land: wandering, listening, being in conversation with dragonflies, hummingbirds, saguaros, and the intelligence of place
The way of council: speaking and witnessing from the authentic edge
Somatic exploration: the body as portal to the depths, to power, to the erotic life-force that moves through all things
Ceremony and ritual: co-creating sacred space where transformation can happen
Working with feminine archetypes: witch, queen, seductress, midwife of birth and death (not in theory, but in your flesh, your voice, your longing)
-
This is for you if:
You have done enough healing and wholing work to surrender to deep transformation
You feel the call of soul: something larger than career, role, or identity
You are ready to explore power, darkness, and desire without apology
You know that something magnificent is waiting, and it's time to say yes
You want to discover your unique place in the world (your mythopoetic identity and ecological niche)
This program is for anyone who identifies as a woman and feels called to women's ceremonial space.
-
Marta Gaunt, M.A.
Marta has been drawn to the fecund, fruitful dark places since childhood—to mystery, myth, night, and the wild intelligence of the more-than-human world. As a soul initiation guide and mentor, she is particularly called to the territories of the underworld and to creating ceremonial space where women can remember their power.
Marta has been studying nature-based soul work with Animas Valley Institute since 2015 and is currently completing the Soulcraft Apprenticeship and Initiation Program (SAIP).
-
Aravaipa Canyon Ranch
Aravaipa Canyon Ranch sits at the western entrance to Aravaipa Canyon Wilderness, a rare desert oasis where perennial creek waters flow year-round through towering canyon walls. Ancient sycamores and cottonwoods line the creek. Saguaros stand as sentinels on surrounding hillsides. The night sky opens vast and unobscured.
-
Dates: April 22-26, 2026
Start Time: Wednesday, 1pm
End Time: Sunday, 1pmLocation: Aravaipa Canyon Ranch, Winkelman, Arizona
Lodging: Indoor lodging and camping are both available. Camping is encouraged. If camping, participants are responsible for bringing their own personal camping equipment.
Transportation: Participants are responsible for their own transportation to and from the program. Closest airports are Tucson and Phoenix.
Meals: Communal breakfasts and dinners will be provided. We accommodate gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan needs. For other dietary restrictions, please bring supplemental food to meet your requirements. Participants are responsible for their own lunches and snacks. Limited refrigerator space is available.
-
Sliding Scale: $750-$950
Please choose the price point that honestly reflects your financial situation:
$750 (Supported): You're managing essential expenses carefully, and this program would be a financial stretch. Choose this knowing you're supported by those paying higher amounts.
$850 (Standard): You can afford this program without financial hardship. This price covers the true cost of the retreat.
$950 (Supporting): You have financial comfort and want to support accessibility for others. Choosing this price helps make the program possible for those with fewer resources.
Early Bird Discount (Apply by March 17, 2026):
Take $100 off any price level when you apply by March 17.If even the supported price is a barrier, please reach out. Don't let an inability to pay deter you. We'll work together to find an amount that's workable for you.
This is ceremony. Descent. Mystery.
We will court the darkness. We will feed the fires of imagination. We will strip away what no longer serves. We will let our voices open the doors between worlds.
There is no map for what wants to be born through you. No known outcome. Just your willingness to follow your longing into the fruitful unknown, held by women who are also choosing to risk at this level. Women who know they were born for exactly these times.
This is not a wellness retreat. Not a personal development workshop. This is an invitation to walk the path of Inanna, of Persephone. To descend, to be transformed, and to return bearing gifts the world desperately needs.